


The Bastard of Driftmark and the Secret of Summerhall

by aceofhearts88



Series: Howling at the Stars [22]
Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Dragonstone, Driftmark, Greyjoy Rebellion, Mentions of other characters - Freeform, Starfall, a little bit of origin story for Aurane since I put him in another generation, relationships not in the center of this, secrets of the key revealed
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-13
Updated: 2017-12-13
Packaged: 2019-02-14 08:37:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,791
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13003953
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aceofhearts88/pseuds/aceofhearts88
Summary: Aurane's life was easy. The bastard son of Captain Lucerys Velaryon, the son of the master-of-ships, the son of a Great King's nephew.But then his family fell apart, Robert's Rebellion took away his friends, his father lost his lordship and his honor and Aurane became a hostage in all but name to the Usurper's brother.In the aftermath of the Greyjoy Rebellion, his life is going to change again and it all starts with a key.--This Oneshot is actually important to the plot of this series.





	The Bastard of Driftmark and the Secret of Summerhall

“Captain?”

“We need a stretcher, we can't move him like this.”

“Someone get a damn Maester for the Captain!”

“Come on, kid, wake up...Come on, Aurane!”

\--

Aurane Waters was born on a hot summer's day out on the open sea to a woman who had not been his father's wife, nor his paramour. He had been the result of a night of pleasure in a Lysene tavern between The Lord of Driftmark and a Volantene ship captain, born out of loneliness and a lot of moonshine.

His mother had given birth to him nine moons later, put him to her breast and then immediately went back on deck to oversee her crew. Six moons later, she had found the flagship of the Royal Targaryen fleet anchoring in the harbor of Dragonstone and handed her cooing smiling son over to a flabbergasted Lord Lucerys Velaryon before disappearing with her ship into the horizon.

At least that was how Aurane's uncle Laeno liked to describe it as.

Aurane had been a surprise for his father, a shocking surprise but a pleasant one nevertheless and no one had ever dared to propose to great Captain Lucerys what he was supposed to do with his bastard son. Still unnamed as he had been set into the arms of his father and been proclaimed his responsibility by his mother who wanted to get back to her home and her work without further disturbances, Aurane had been named for a god of Old Valyria who had watched over the sea.

He had taken his first steps on deck of his father's ship as they had sailed to Maidenpool to cash in taxes in a favor for the Crown and then newly crowned King Aerys.

His first word he spoke when his father had brought him home to Driftmark for the first time not a fortnight later, and Aurane had not only been presented to his father's household but also to his two older brothers. Corlyn and Jacaerys had both doted on him, neither of them ever for a second thinking of shunning him for their father's sin.

Lady Crivina had been dead a year when Lucerys had travelled to Lys after all.

“Jace!” That had been it, the first real counting word leaving pale lips as tall and lanky Jacaerys had held Aurane in his arms, “Jace, Jace, Jace!”

It had ultimately cemented the status between the three brothers.

It had never been Corlyn and Jace really before, the brothers had been different as day and night since they had first taken breath a year apart. Corlyn was the almost perfect heir for Driftmark, dutiful and a perfect little lordling, but a seahorse he was not. Jace on the other hand was only that, already born on a ship like Aurane later, the secondborn son had only ever wanted a ship of his own, a crew of his own, no wife, no holdings, no duty, just a ship and the sea.

Right from the start then, it had been Jace a little Aurane had toddled after. Jace who had taught him how to swim, how to ride, how to fight, how to raise a sail. Jace and Aurane against the rest of the world, up and about the island all day long while proper Corlyn sat his lessons and was happy in welcoming bannermen of their father's to Driftmark in the times that Lucerys spent in King's Landing as Master-of-ships.

Even in appearance they had been so different. Corlyn who looked like the Celtigar blood of his mother's side, tall and strong, dark haired, eyes a solemn dark blue. And on the other side, Jace and Aurane, tall and lean, hair as pale silverblond of their father's, their eyes shades of green, Jace's as mint as the gowns Lady Eleana Dayne loved so much, Aurane's the very symbol of their House's sigil.

The Old, The True, The Brave.

Those were the words of House Velaryon but also the nicknames their grandmother had bestowed upon the three brothers. 

Corlyn the Old, always so proper, always knowing what right polite thing to say, wise beyond his years and always so grown up. Jace the True, always brutally honest with his opinons and his actions, the true heir for a Velaryon Seahorse. And Aurane the Brave, the one unplanned, the one bravely accepting a fate as a bastard where he would always have to work harder to get what others were handed freely.

Despite how many times the brothers had edged on with each other though, especially Corlyn and Jace, there had never been something coming between them to destroy bonds for good. Bickering among each other but united against outside forces, especially when someone dared to question Aurane's position on Driftmark or in the capital where their father spent most of his time as master of ships for Aerys Targaryen.

Corlyn and Jace stopped fighting when they thought Aurane needed protection.

Until they didn't.

\--

The year it all went down had already been difficult.

277 AC.

Grandmother had died at the beginning of the year, a short illness she hadn't been able to fight against anymore. Then Duskendale happened and Aurane left court only reluctantly in sight of his friends' stressed faces but tension was so ripe that it only too gratefully unloaded itself onto those who were innocent but standing in the wrong place at the wrong moment.

And Rhaegar had asked him to take some time at home before Lucerys' bastard son could become the target, simply because of the status of his blood. Richard and Myles had been sent to Dragonstone as well by Rhaegar to get them out of the powderkeg that the Red Keep had become. Jon had taken flight to solve non-existent issues at Griffin's Roost.

Oswell had of course been unable to leave, sworn into the Kingsguard as he already was and Arthur had absolutely refused to leave Rhaegar's side.

Rhaegar couldn't have known that Aurane would hand in one keep at war for another.

Corlyn and Jace had already been fighting when Aurane had arrived with their father and every day after had made it only worse and worse. Long screaming arguments that made Aurane press hands over his ears despite being almost five and ten. Longer periods even of no talking or even looking at each other. Snapping at others. And no one really knowing what was going on or what had caused it.

Only several years later, and with Corlyn drunk out of his mind, Aurane would get to know that Jace had been planning trips to places Corlyn had disapproved heavily of.

Valyria on top of it all.

Father had kept his mouth shut, too occupied with news coming from the capital over Duskendale and how slow progress was being made. And Aurane had kept silent anyway, had always staid out of his brother's arguments, not wanting to take sides even when he felt Jace was utterly in the right.

It had always worked out.

Until he woke up one morning and Jace was gone.

No message. No explanation. Just gone. 

Not even a piece of clothing left behind, he had taken everything, his room left behind bare, as if he'd never even existed in the first place.

And the household staff blamed him. They blamed Aurane.

They blamed the bastard for the tension between the trueborn brothers, putting a complete blind eye on the fact that Corlyn and Jace had been fighting since before Jace had even learned to speak. Corlyn, refusing to talk about anything, sent Aurane away, told him to wait it out until they stopped talking about it.

He sent his little brother away when all Aurane had needed was someone telling him that Jace had not just abandoned him like that.

Corlyn became cold and distant over night. Father ignored everything and focused so much on Aerys and the fallout of Duskendale to numb the pain that Jace's departure had left.

Aurane was drowning on dry land.

\--

Robert's Rebellion was a nightmare.

He lost all his friends. 

His family fell from grace.

And Aurane was bartered off to Stannis Baratheon to serve as an overgrown hostage to keep the great Lucerys even more punished.

But what he was left to care for it. 

His father was a shadow of himself. His brother was a stranger.

And what had started with Jace leaving him, went on with Rhaegar, Myles and Richard dying on the battlefield and Jon being exiled to Essos, and had ended with Arthur and Oswell dying in Dorne, Aurane the Brave was gone.

Replaced with Captain Aurane the Strict. Captain Aurane the Hard-Working. Captain Aurane the Unforgiving.

Working endlessly to show his skills, his talents, to show what he was worth, to prove himself to the new power.

He would show them all.

For Jace. For Myles and Jon. For Rhaegar and Richard. For Oswell and Arthur.

\--

The Ironborn Rebellion, or Greyjoy Rebellion as the Maesters quickly seemed to call it as well, left  
Aurane abed for weeks, recuperating from a severe shoulder injury after he had been slammed from his ship in the final assault on Pyke. Lord Stannis gave him leave to get better at home on Driftmark and took up position in King's Landing once more, apparently nothing short but a real war could bring him back onto talking matters with his kingly brother.

Aurane would get the honors he was due to receive for his deeds in the war once he returned to King's Landing, the maneuver that could have easily cost him an arm had saved Ser Barristan from being skewered by an Ironborn. He had no idea what the King would see fit to honor him with, the letter hadn't said much and Stannis had said even less when he had briefly come by Driftmark to see his leading Captain.

Until then he was bed bound.

And going crazy.

“Don't you dare make another move!”

Aurane groaned but froze where he had managed to swing at least one leg over the edge of the bed and had been in the process of actually standing up when his father had walked into his bedroom.

“What do you think you are doing, son?” His father snapped and his hands fussed Aurane right back into the pillows, all with blankets pulled up to his chest as if he was five again. “You have strictly been told that you are not leaving this bed until the Maester says so.”  
“I'm fine, Father.” Aurane defended himself but knew that it was useless, there was no going against his father when Captain Lucerys Velaryon was worried about his sons.

“You're still injured. And I swear, Aurane, I will tie you to this bed if I have to.” His father went on as if he hadn't even heard, grumbling on about the words the Maester had said when Aurane's crew had brought him to Driftmark, patched together by the King's Maester himself but too feverish to be coherent.

The joys of war.

Catching sight of movement over his father's shoulder while Lucerys picked at his blanket and rearranged the plate he had brought into the room, Aurane rolled his eyes at his brother and Corlyn gave him an amused smile. His behavior alarmed Aurane a little still, it was true that they had been closer since Robert's Rebellion but Corlyn still usually had kept his distance, no idea what to do with Aurane, but now he was almost brotherly and it was Aurane who had no idea what to do with him.

“Father, I think he is good for the moment.” Corlyn spoke up and bent down to pick up a box he must have set down to further enjoy a moment of watching while Aurane was treated like a child. Their father huffed but let go of Aurane and moved to sit on the chair next to the bed, Aurane thanked him the breathing space by dutifully grabbing a slice of peach from the plate. “A Dornish trading ship docked in the harbor, a sailor brought this up to the castle.” Corlyn explained and placed the box on the bed in good reach for Aurane. “Said it's for you.”

“For me?” Aurane wanted to know, “Now, who would send a whole box for me?” He wondered out loud but then grinned when he caught sight of the wooden top of the box branded with the fallen star of the Daynes. His fumbled attempts at opening it with one arm strapped to his chest earned him a huff from his older brother before Corlyn did the job himself.

Aurane laughed at the thick stack of letters, probably at least three or four people wanting to tell how glad they were to know that he was alright while also calling him an idiot. He grabbed the tied together stack and untied the knot. Andric, no surprise there, he was always good in worrying. Ashara, surely thanking him for saving Barristan and getting out well. Richard, probably wanting an indepth recall of the battles. Allyria had written as well, hopefully not too angry over him getting hurt. 

A thick one from Arthur, Aurane was going to make sure that one would be read in absolute privacy. Arthur didn't often have to say much, he knew that from the past, a long letter had to mean something.

“Woah, Jon wrote one, too.” He grinned as he turned the last letter in the stack around, “Well, now I'm in trouble if the little guy decided to write.” His father laughed and Corlyn chuckled as he sank down on the foot of Aurane's bed.

The box further contained a bottle of Richard's moonshine and some blueberry jam that Aurane cradled against his chest with one hand when his father caught sight of it, too.

\--

The night was clear a sennight later and a sharp breeze was coming in from the east but Aurane did not shiver, he had grown up in just this weather, had endured much worse out on the sea. He kept his eyes on the ships that lay anchored in the harbor bay of Driftmark, shifting up and down among the gentle waves.

“If Father knew you're out here, he'll go through on his threat to tie you down.”

Corlyn appeared from the lit corridor that led back into the castle and Aurane smiled, right hand pulling his cloak further over his left side. His arm was fine again, and the Maester had given him a clean health, with only a small warning to not overdo it immediately again.

“Father is asleep, he will not know. Or will he?” He asked, sending a sidelong glance to his brother who snorted and came to stand next to him.  
“I think I've outgrown the tattle age, little brother.” Corlyn noted and leaned forward until he could look down into the courtyard, only a handful of guards were walking their patrol paths. “Just don't push yourself too hard. I don't know what Father would do if he lost you, too. He was worried sick when we got the raven carrying news of your injuries. I needed guards to restrain Father from taking his ship out.” Aurane bit his lips upon his brother's words, he had already imagined something like that.

He couldn't remember arriving at Driftmark, had been too caught in fever spells and whatever hellish draughts the King's Maester had deemed necessary to pour down his throat. The first memory he had after crashing into the sea that he could be sure of not having imagined was seeing his father's paler than usual face asleep next to his bed, looking decades older.

“And before you get it wrong...” Corlyn went on and straightened up again so he could turn to properly face Aurane, “I was sick with worry about you as well. I know we didn't always have the best relationship but I lost one brother already, I didn't want it to become two.” Aurane smiled at him and reached out to squeeze Corlyn's hand for a moment. “Especially because it's my fault that Jace left.”

“It's not your fault.” After so many years the words did not only come easier, they also came truly meant. There wasn't a day where Aurane didn't miss Jace, the pain of not knowing what had happened to his brother like a constant stabbing pain in his chest, but time had also brought enough occasions for him to think about it all.

And he had stopped blaming Corlyn a long time ago.

“I chased him away. He left because of me.” Corlyn insisted and he sounded as defeated as he had never before, Aurane bumped their shoulders together so blue eyes would look at him.  
“Corlyn, it wasn't your fault alone.” Aurane began and realized that this conversation had been so long overdue, “Jace pushed back just as hard as you pushed him. And Father and I, we shouldn't have left you two on your own to get it out of your systems.”

“Jace and I fought all the time, there was no sign that that time was gonna be any different before it all went to shits.” Corlyn sighed and turned his face up into the light of the stars, “The last words I said to him before he stormed out of my rooms were 'Go, get yourself killed, you never wanted to be my brother anyway.'” Aurane winced, even if he had known those words already, Corlyn had confessed it to him before, drunk out of his wits on the third anniversary of Jace's disappearance.

“Last words can be cruel, but you shouldn't hang onto them so much. You wanna know what the last words were that I said to Rhaegar? 'You owe me ten gold dragons, so don't die.'” Aurane admitted and Corlyn made a face, “Yeah, not exactly something I consider to be proud of. And before I saw him again, my last words to Arthur had been some terrible quip over his blushing.” That made Corlyn laugh quietly and Aurane smirk in success, “Maybe what you said went too far, but Jace wasn't a child, he shouldn't have run away like one.”

“Look at you, being the wise one now.” Corlyn teased and Aurane laughed, “My little brother is all grown up.” He concluded and pulled Aurane closer with an arm around his shoulders.  
“I lost a great many friends during the Rebellion, survived Aerys' court and am now surviving in King Robert's. You stop being irresponsible if you've seen what I've seen.” Aurane gave the short explanation for it, “Especially now where they look down at me not only for the dragonblood in my veins but for the sheer happenstance that Rhaegar and I shared some facial features.”

“You proved their doubts wrong. Without your leadership, King Robert could have lost a great many men. And your clearly idiotic stunt saved his Lord Commander.” Corlyn recalled and Aurane huffed himself out of his hold again.  
“I didn't save Barristan for King Robert.” Aurane made clear, “I saved a friend and I'd do it all over again, even if Arthur will never stop yelling at me for it. Eight years ago, I thought I had lost everything. One of my brothers lost on sea, the other basically a stranger. My father disgraced. All of my friends dead. And I forced to serve the Usurper's brother on an island that he had absolutely no place on.”

“The Baratheon's carry the blood of the dragon in them just like we do.”

“No, not like we do, Corlyn.” Aurane protested and caught blue eyes, “He might have had a Targaryen grandmother just like we did, but the other side of his blood? Stormlanders, bloods of the Andals. We have the blood of Old Valyria in us. Dragonstone is no place for a Stormlander, and the island has been showing that to Stannis from the beginning.”

“Are you blaming the island for what happened to his little girl?”

“No, that was just plain stupidity. I warned Stannis' men a hundred times to not accept any ships from the Disputed Lands into the harbor so shortly after war in Essos. They didn't listen and got the plague.” Aurane mumbled and shuddered when he thought back on the letter that had arrived in King's Landing. “What happened to that little girl is terrible and I wish it on no one. But that red witch? The lost babes? That, my dear brother, is the island's might. It doesn't want Stannis there.”

“We'll get justice one day.” Corlyn surprised him with his words and Aurane raised an eyebrow at him, “What? You think I'm content to sit here on my island, brought into Lordship because of my father's dishonorment? You think any of the old Houses here in the Crownlands are silent because they are loyal to Robert? If a dragon rises for the throne, the Crownlands will rise with him. Granted, the other Lords think they are waiting for Viserys but I have no intention to let them know otherwise for now.”

Aurane closed his eyes and counted to five in his head before opening them again.

“You know that I'm sided with Arthur, right? I want this boy to be happy, not being groomed for the Iron Throne.” He told his brother who gifted him a smile.  
“I want the same, brother, trust me. I'm a father myself, I wouldn't want anyone planning my children's future behind my back either. I understand Arthur's frustration, but when Lord Celtigar approached me over ideas to secretly support Viserys, I had to do something behind another set of scenes. Viserys is Rhaegar's brother, not his son, the throne doesn't belong to him.”

“Wouldn't matter now anyway, Rhaegar's siblings are lost in Essos.”

“Sometimes what was lost can still cause ripples across whole oceans.”

Raising one eyebrow sharply, Aurane glanced over to Corlyn again, finding his brother's eyes set towards the horizon. “What are you talking about?” He wanted to know, something weird pulsing in his stomach when his brother shifted his eyes onto him.  
“If I showed you something, could you promise me to keep it secret from Father?” Corlyn demanded of him and Aurane gaped at him, “And I mean it, Aurane, no word to him. In fact no word to anyone, not even Arthur.”

“Why is anyone suddenly so convinced that I can't keep my mouth shut around Arthur?” Aurane grumbled but quickly sobered up again in the sight of his oldest brother's serious face. “Yes, I promise. What's one more secret on my conscience? And Father needs a break, I won't tell him, no matter what you show me.”

Corlyn pulled him back into the castle then and down to his solar, the guards were excused and Corlyn actually locked all three access doors, even going so far as to check outside the windows. Only when he was content of them being alone did Corlyn move to sit behind his desk, Aurane watched him from one of the chairs in front of it. Watched how his brother got out a key and then opened the drawer on his right, Corlyn pulled out a small chest, not unlike the one Rhaegar had hidden in the tunnels beneath the Red Keep for Arthur.

“This came a few moons after King Robert had officially pardoned Arthur by royal decree.” Corlyn began and revealed a small scroll, it was wrapped together by a golden ribbon. “The guards couldn't tell me how it came to sit on the front steps of the castle...” Aurane's ears rang with the reminder of someone else who had spoken words to him like that, Andric when he had last been in Starfall and both Dayne brothers had revealed to him that Rhaegar's sword rested down in the dungeons. Arrived in Starfall under similar mysterious circumstances.

He grabbed the scroll that was held out to him and at first turned over the ribbon, no crest, no sigil, no letters, nothing.

Aurane sent a look to Corlyn and his brother smiled.

“Go on, open it.”

Careful fingers untied the ribbon and unrolled the scroll.

_'The sea does not swallow a seahorse, it leads it to a higher purpose. The time will come when the True rejoins the Old and the Brave, until then do not believe him lost, just busy. – JV'_

The sharp gasp that left his lips seemed to echo from the walls.

“I don't think it's fake.” Corlyn spoke up into the silence that held on while Aurane stared at the words, stared at the choice of the wording, at the initials at the end that fit his brother's.

“If...if this...if this isn't a fake...” Aurane stuttered, couldn't get the words out, couldn't even allow himself to think the words because of what they would mean. Corlyn seemed to have less trouble, seemed calmer but then he also had had some time to come to terms with it. His brother stepped up next to him and squeezed his shoulder, his hand remaining to rest there as he spoke.  
“If it isn't a fake then Jace is still alive. And he wants us to know.” Corlyn brought it down to the potential truth and Aurane breathed in and out. Once. Then Twice. Eyes continously staring down at the initials at the end of the small message.

“But...if he wants us to know, why not come home?” He was a little ashamed over how quiet and stupidly vulnerable his voice came out.  
“I don't know, Aurane.” Corlyn told him and squeezed his shoulder again before taking the scroll that Aurane handed back to him, mind still whirring in circles. “I'm thinking about sending a ship to Pentos, have some men ask around.”

Chewing on his bottom lip, Aurane fought the urge to demand himself to be steering that ship, he knew he couldn't leave. Stannis would have his hide for abandoning his post for some potentially foolish adventure to find a trace of his brother.

“Ask cousin Adrian. He's got a good ship, loyal men and he knew Jace, especially how he looked like.” He proposed instead and Corlyn smiled at him as he sank back into his chair. “What do you think Jace might be after?”

“I have no idea.”

\--

After Corlyn had opened up about the secret he had been keeping, Aurane decided that being open about one he had kept close to his heart was a good way to stabilize this newfound brotherly relationship.

And he had run out of ideas anyway.

If not even the old dusty tomes of their library could help him figure out what this word on Rhaegar's key had to mean, then maybe his father and brother had an idea.

He produced the key from the chain around his neck after he had explained what Arthur and him had found beneath the capital and why they had looked for it.

“So that's why you've been carrying that thing.” His brother exhaled while their Father was turning the key around in his hands, they had retired to Corlyn's solar for the moment to not be disturbed by Corlyn's wife or his children. “First time I saw it on your neck when they carried you from your ship, I found it quite peculiar. You haven't been the type for necklaces so far.”

Aurane scowled at him until Corlyn grinned.

“Arthur entrusted me with it because we think whatever it unlocks might be on Dragonstone. If not there, then Summerhall, both not places he can move freely to these days.” Aurane explained how he had come into ownership of the mysterious key. “Only I cannot find out anything about it. I've been through every old Valyrian tome in the library. If Rhaegar hid anything in Dragonstone, it must be somewhere where the Baratheons haven't looked yet, rules out a great many places.”

“Did they ever venture down into the old dungeons in the tunnels beneath the Dragonmont?” Lucerys sent both of his sons into shocked silence, blue and seagreen eyes staring at him.  
“Father, no one voluntarily goes down there, toxic fumes and instable ground, traps laid by dragons. Syrax lived in those parts of the tunnels before the Dance of the Dragons.” Corlyn recalled easily, history lessons showing while Aurane would have only mentioned that he didn't like the sight of it.

Dark endless seeming tunnels down into the depth of a still active volcano.

There were a lot of nicer places to be at on Dragonstone.

Lucerys laughed, key held in one hand as he looked to his oldest son, “Oh my boy, seems the lessons stuck a little too well. Why do you think those things were being taught to you boys? Sure the tunnels are dangerous, haven't been properly taken care of for centuries by now, but they've held long before that and they will still stand a long time after us. We tell those stories to our children so they wouldn't get the ideas of going exploring on their own.”

“Sounds like the perfect place to hide something. Stannis' men surely never went down there, too afraid of ghosts, probably thinking there is still a dragon down there.” Aurane mused and took the key back when his father offered, “So you think this key could unlock one of the dungeon cells?”  
“No, this is not a key for a door, certainly not for something as simple as a dungeon cell. I don't know what the word means, it's too old, but the key is made from good steel and too fancily decorated.” His father disagreed with his first idea, “I'd say that key unlocks whatever is hidden inside the cell.”

Aurane scoffed.

“There must be hundreds of cells in the dungeons, Father. I can maybe get away with one day of sneaking around, but not a whole fortnight.”

“Corlyn, do we still have those old maps of Dragonstone?” His father thought aloud and Corlyn got up to walk over to one of the bookshelves.  
“The one from the Dance of the Dragons?” Corlyn wanted clarified and pulled open some drawners when their father hummed, Aurane turned the key around in his hands, wondering not for the first time what was so important to hide that Rhaegar hadn't even dared to tell Arthur about it.

Not more than where to find a key that could potentially unlock something on Dragonstone.

It was highly unusual for him.

“Here we go.” Corlyn ripped him out of his thoughts again and carried a stack of rolled up maps to his desk, Aurane followed his father's example and joined him at it. Lucerys shifted around the maps for a moment before he chose one and unrolled it with their help, using some books Corlyn had had lying around to keep the edges down. Aurane looked over the old drawings of tunnelways, certainly made while trying to find dragon eggs.

“Alright, let's see if we can narrow this down.”

\--

The trip to Dragonstone had to be postponed a little even after they had made a plan because a raven had come from King's Landing, asking for Aurane's presence to be finally honored for his deeds in the battle.

To Aurane's surprise, Corlyn came with him to the capital, leaving their father behind to manage Driftmark in his absence.

“Are they always looking so much?” Corlyn muttered quietly at his side as they moved along the corridors to get to the throne room, Aurane was not really eager to receive whatever honors were in store in front of a whole assembled court crowd. Tugging at the stiff doublet collar that his brother had forced him into without an explanation, Aurane glanced around them and found as usual some pairs of eyes following every move.

“This is the first time you've been in the capital in over fifteen years, of course they're gonna look.” He nevertheless teased his brother, like him, Corlyn was decked out in the best clothes his wife had found in their House colors, something Aurane had usually tended to avoid in King's Landing. Always some kind of inverted color schemes or just plain black, he wasn't ashamed in being a bastard, but his House colors were something for trueborn sons.

“I think they're looking at you just as much, little brother.”

Aurane was about to reply when they turned the corner and were faced with the open throne room doors and the crowd behind it.

“You sure this is an honor assembly and not an execution?” Aurane whisper, swallowing heavily, cocky attitude and big ego and all were one thing, he was still very much aware that Robert Baratheon would not become a friend of his anymore in this lifetime, especially not after Aurane had picked Arthur's side so openly. Corlyn slapped the back of his head and pushed him forward into the throne room, Aurane glanced around the crowd as he made his way to the front of it.

Familiar faces and strangers alike greeted him, some of small nods of acknowledgement, others with open indifference but no one outright sneered and that was definitely new. Up front the Iron Throne was still empty but the daise was filled with half the small council. Stannis stood on the right, talking quietly with his younger brother Renly who was still not off age and ruling Storm's End with a Regent. 

When he caught sight of Aurane, he inclined his head and Aurane nodded back, feeling a little more convinced that he wasn't going to lose his head after all. Whatever animosity Robert held against him so deeply rooted that it would hopefully never disappear, Stannis saw skill and talent and respected him for his work, and the sheer fact that Aurane had agreed to do his job on the small council for him so Stannis wouldn't have to deal with his brother.

On the other side of the throne, Varys was lurking in the shadows as always, whispering with a young man dressed in dark blue robes that spoke of faking riches. Grand Maester Pycelle glared as always and Aurane looked away from him, disgusted as usual by the old oily bastard. There was no sign of Jon Arryn or the king when Aurane stopped next to Corlyn at the front of the crowd, and the only Kingsguard around was a truly bored looking Jaime Lannister leaning against a pillar to the side.

They exchanged brief smirks as greetings just as the door to the side opened and the King entered with his booming laughter echoing from the walls. He was followed by Ser Barristan and two younger Kingsguard members, one of them a Celtigar and the other a Reacher by the looks of him.

Barristan smiled as he took his place down at the daise and Aurane smiled back him, inclining his head, he had meant what he had told Corlyn weeks ago now, saving Barristan had not been a favor to the king but what friendship included. Robert sat down on the throne with a loud huff while his new Queen, Delena Florent, sat down on the smaller chair a servant had quickly set in place for her three steps below the throne.

She wasn't a really breathtaking beauty, but Aurane supposed that once you've met Ashara Dayne or Elia Martell, it was hard to really call someone else beautiful again, but she was pretty in her own way. And surely less vindictive and poisonous than Cersei Lannister had been.

Jon Arryn was the last to take his place at the King's right and it was him who spoke up, bringing the throne room to an utter silence.

“On the notion of honoring him for his deeds in the Battle for Pyke, the crown pleads Captain Aurane Waters to step forward.”

And here it went.

Off to insult.

Aurane made his steps forward until he was standing in the middle between the crowd and the line of Kingsguard, eyes raised to meet Robert's first before moving on to Jon Arryn. He wouldn't kneel, not for this occasion.

“Captain Aurane, the crown thanks you for your service in the Ironborn Rebellion. You have shown great command over the fleet ships that were set under your control. Your strategy plans were greatly successful and the Greyjoys would have surely had more successful flight attempts if it had not been for your quick reactions.”

Alright, praise, felt good.

And deserved.

“Your actions at the Battle for Pyke saved the life of Lord Commander Ser Barristan Selmy and the Crown thanks you for that as well. Furthermore we see fit to honor you with the degree agreed on with your brother, Lord Corlyn Velaryon.”

What...

Sending a quick glance over his shoulder at his brother, Aurane only found Corlyn's perfectly blank face, only his eyes giving away that he had indeed known something. Suddenly his heart was pounding a little harder in his chest.

Corlyn had insisted that Aurane dressed in the right colors...

“From here on, the Crown will have it heard that Captain Waters will be known as Lord Captain Aurane Velaryon.”

Jon Arryn spoke but Aurane could barely hear him over the rushing in his ears while he blindly stared ahead.

Legitimized. Legitimized by the Crown.

Corlyn set a hand to his back and Aurane snapped back to the situation at hand.

“I thank You, Your Grace, that is most generous.” And certainly more than Aurane would have ever thought possible, not that his father or Corlyn had not shown the desire to have him carry the family name before but with their family dishonored as it was and out of the Crown's favor, it had seemed out of reach. 

He sent a grateful look to his brother who smiled back at him.

“Additionally, Lord Stannis has seen fit to argue for another honor to be bestowed upon you.” Jon Arryn went on and Aurane chanced a look to the ever grim face of his liege lord, Stannis showed no sign of any other emotion, “In accordance to the wishes of the Master-of-ships, you'll be hereby declared Lord Admiral of the Royal Fleet.”

And there went the last breath in his lungs. Even Corlyn gasped quietly next to him.

\--

“My son, the Lord Admiral of the Royal Fleet.” Lucerys declared happily and Aurane grunted into his pillow, somewhere off to his left Corlyn laughed, “There hasn't been a Lord Admiral in the family who didn't just get that title as part of the master-of-ships position in a long time. You earned it, my son, you should be proud of it.”

“Never thought I'd see the day where little Aurane is too shy to boast loudly about his accomplishments.” His Uncle Laeno noted, “Might it be that your time spent with Arthur finally ended up with some of his manners rubbing off on you like I'd hoped all these years ago?”

This time Aurane snorted and rolled back onto his back on the settee in the family room back home on Driftmark, his goodsister was putting the children to bed after they had celebrated Aurane's new status and title.

“The only rubbing off that might have happened between Arthur and me has certainly had nothing to do with good manners.” He commented and his father pulled a face while his uncle grinned.  
“And there is my little brother again.” Corlyn chuckled, handing Aurane another cup of wine, “Come on, a toast. To Aurane.”

Aurane grinned and took it.

\--

Throwing one last look from left to right, Aurane tightly grabbed the oil lamp with one hand and the Valyrian steel dagger with the other as he walked into the dark tunnels. He kept the hood pulled over his hair and the shawl covering his face until the darkness swallowed up the entrance behind them, only then did he tug both down again.

Obsidian shimmered black on all sides in the wide tunnel, the ground still made with manmade stairs so far up, but the traces of dragons who had once upon a time lived in these tunnels could not be ignored. Scratches in the stone walls, broken off stairs, melted obsidian in some places, the very blood in Aurane's veins sang with the sounds of old.

He needed to walk down for minutes until he found the first doors. Guard chambers with no doors, or furniture for that matter, it must have been a long long time since the Targaryens of old had held prisoners here that were being watched by actual human guards.

Why need guards when dragon prowled the tunnels? Who would be stupid enough to even think about escaping?

The cells began deeper still and Aurane would have wished for torches on the walls that he could light up but there were none, and why would there be. The dragons wouldn't have needed them, the prisoners hadn't deserved them. The heat could be felt slowly as well, more a pleasant tingling then anything else, the volcano proving his power still.

His father and Corlyn had both proposed after some discussions that the second level of cells would be a good place to search, everything below that level was considered too dangerous to walk into and Aurane was quite sure in his argument that Rhaegar wouldn't have wanted Arthur to come to harm in revealing his secrets. The first level might still be where rival forces or even Aerys' own men would have looked for something, so the second it had to be.

If there was something on Dragonstone. If Aurane returned to his father's ship in harbor empty handed later, he would have to make a trip to the mainland and ride to Summerhall, and dig around in ruins that had still spooked him to all Seven hells when Rhaegar had still been alive.

He crept forward slowly but with secure steps. 'Trust your gut', his father had said to him before Aurane had left him on his ship in the harbor and Aurane had only barely bitten back the snapped remark over what he fucking meant with that. Now though, surrounded by nothing but darkness and strangely warm if sharp obsidian, Aurane was beginning to get it.

It didn't feel as strange and terrible as it should maybe. Aurane's blood held Old Valyria in it. Velaryon and Targaryen on his father's side and Volantene noblefolk on his distant mother's one. He wasn't a foreigner, not on Dragonstone.

The second level of cells greeted him as empty, dusty and untouched as the first had, growing smaller in size, the walls weren't as wide or high anymore. Aurane stopped and fought against the urge to take a deep breath to clear his head, he was too deep in the mountain, this wasn't clear air anymore, wasn't healthy to breathe too long.

He looked left and right, quickly counted two dozen doors and sighed.

“Could be worse.” He muttered and turned to the left side first, many of the doors had been broken opened or destroyed even, maybe dragons fighting each other in the corridors, it wouldn't be surprising. Those doors still locked held locks that weren't made to stand against well forged Valyrian steel and Aurane made short work of them, but he found them all empty except for a stray bone.

At the end of the corridor he was met by the sight of a cave-in that blocked off the path down into the lower levels, it looked old, very old already.

“At least that rules out that you went deeper than this, Rhaegar.” He mumbled to no one in particular and approached the other side of the corridor. The doors there were all still locked, but just like previously, they proved empty upon being opened. 

Until he got to the one in the middle.

The thick door swung open and Aurane slapped both hands in front of his face when the cloud of black dust poured out of it. Coughing heavily he stumbled a few steps back and hastily pulled the shawl over his mouth, suddenly thankful for the everlasting draft that rushed through the dungeons, apparently it had its use after all.

“Gods, why did I agree to this.” He croaked when he could see something again in front of himself, the dust cloud having quickly been carried away. He waited a moment longer though until he moved towards the opened chamber, swearing to pay the ship Maester a visit when he was done here. Immediately afterwards.

There was no light coming from inside the chamber and Aurane cursed when he had to turn back around to grab the oil lamp, too afraid to light a torch, who knew what kind of toxic air he was breathing here.

“What by our olds gods did you hide in here, Rhaegar? Were you trying to kill Arthur?” He asked the dead angrily as he cautiously stepped into the chamber. It wasn't big, the walls maybe the length of two full grown men, no windows of course, black obsidian walls like the rest of the dungeons. “Show me your secret.” 

At the back wall of the room he found a chest, the only content of the chamber, there weren't even hooks at the walls to hang a torch.

“Now, what have we here...”

Bending down with the oil lamp in one hand, Aurane drew the key from his pocket and eyed the lock on the chest that was so black that it looked like part of the room. But surrounding the keyhole, he found the same word written in Old Valyrian that the key in his hand carried.

“You better unlock this now or I will be very cross with ghosts.” Aurane muttered and then mentally took a deep breath before setting the key into the lock, heart thundering a little harder when it effortlessly slid in. This was it. Secrets revealed.

He turned the key. Once. Twice. Thrice.

And the lock gave a little pop, the top of the chest rising a bit to show that it was opened.

Holding his breath, Aurane grabbed the lid and pushed.

The oil lamp crashed to the ground.

His knees hit the ground hard.

Aurane gasped and stared.

Stared at three fully intact dragon eggs nestled in dark red fabric.

\--

“You're not breathing again.”

Aurane's chest burned when he gasped for air, fresh wonderful air filling his lungs as he sharply turned around and got back to pacing along the Captain's Cabin of the Lord of Tides. His Father sat on the armchair he had once upon a time rocked Aurane to sleep on, now though his hand was holding one of the eggs.

One of the dragon eggs.

To be more specific, his father was cradling the one from the right in his hands, a white one that was covered in golden swirls, also the one that Aurane would have chosen to pick up, if he wasn't so busy freaking out.

“Aurane, you need to sit down.”

“Pa...”

“Sit down, son.”

And that was a command and no son of Lucerys Velaryon did not heed his command so Aurane whined at the back of his throat and then sank down on the chair that stood on the other side of the chest that Aurane had carried on board of his father's ship with the help of a mute sailor who had been in his father's service since before Aurane's birth.

His father turned his eyes away from him and onto the white and gold dragon egg, leaving Aurane to tap his foot on the ground and stare at the other two in the chest. One was a deep forest green with rare bronze spots on its scaly shell. The one in the middle, somehow seeming a bit larger maybe than the other two, was a shocking violet that glimmered with a silver shimmer in certain light.

Looking at this egg made Aurane think so intensely of Jon that he had to look away. The violet of the egg was almost perfectly the same exact color of the boy's eyes from the last time Aurane had seen him and it made his skin crawl.

“It's barely believable, isn't it?” His father whispered almost and Aurane glanced over to him while kicking off his boots and pulling his feet up onto the edge of the chair, hugging his knees to his chest. He felt sick with panicked dread.

“Barely?” He wanted to know and blew out a loud breath, “Let's start with me screaming inside my head since the moment I laid eyes on them.” He muttered in response and his father simply smiled, carefully laying the white egg back into the chest and picking up the violet one. “Arthur is gonna faint and I am not quite looking forward to that.”  
“You've seen dragon eggs before, son, and so has he.” His father tried to sound comforting but Aurane only snorted, dropping his legs down again so he could lean forward and draw a very careful finger over the shell of the green egg.

“I've seen shells of destroyed dragon eggs in the Dragonpit. And the ones that had long since turned to utter stone that Aerys had found on Dragonstone and unsuccessfully tried to hatch.” Aurane recalled, grimacing upon the memory of the now dead king's fury upon the failure, people had lost heads that day and Arthur and Oswell had scrubbed at their swords with empty eyes all night. “These have not turned to stone. And Rhaegar couldn't have found them on the island, where would he have looked that Aerys' many men had not been before they gave up.”

His father chuckled, a nearly fond sound and Aurane only then realized just what the look in his father's eyes had to mean.

“You know them!” He called out and immediately slapped a hand in front of his mouth to muffle his voice's strength, continuing a moment later in a much more quiet tone. Corlyn was still up in the castle to discuss some things with Stannis. His father had ordered the crew to get provisions in the harbor village so that they may be undisturbed and ready to set sail in the night but you never knew who might be listening in. “You know where these eggs come from.”  
“Summerhall,” was his father's short first answer and Aurane's blood ran cold, when he had been younger he had never wanted to hear that story, it had frightened him but it had been one of Jace's favourites and Aurane had begrudgingly suffered through them.

And consequently crawled into Jace's bed in the night when the nightmares came because his brother had been the one demanding to hear it again.

His father had been seven and twenty when Summerhall had gone up into green flames and hundreds had paid the price for King Aegon's maniac dreams of hatching seven dragon eggs. Lucerys had been there as well, as kin to the King even sitting among the higher ranks, along with his younger brother Laeno and their mother, and all three of them had escaped with luckily no injuries save for a few long weeks of terrible nightmares.

“These are eggs from Aegon's Seven?”

Thanks to having had a living and breathing bookshelf as a friend, Aurane knew whose eggs had been laid into the ring of wildfire, but everyone had thought the eggs to have been utterly destroyed in it.

Then again, if anyone could have found them, it got to be Rhaegar. No one knew Summerhall like he did, probably not even old Maester Aemon at the Wall, and the man had grown up in that castle for years. But if Rhaegar had found these in the deep unstable ruins of Summerhall...why hadn't Arthur known? 

Oswell and him, Aurane could understand that, they liked talking too much. Richard and Myles might have been too young. And Connington would have only disapproved anyway.

But Arthur?

How could Arthur not have known?

His father smiled, still all calm and just mesmerized, “Aegon had the eggs of close family collected for his plans. His own of course, white it was, with green swirls. His brother Aerion's, so beautiful that one looked, gold and silver with fiery veins running along the scales.” Aurane grimaced at the description, once you heard it as a child from a gleeful brother who liked his scary stories a little too much, you certainly never forgot how Prince Aerion died, how fitting.

“He had his brother Daeron's and his sister Daella's as well. Like Aerion, they had both been long dead then. I don't recall the color of theirs at all, it's been so long.” His father continued and Aurane smiled, even if very thin, it was easy to count back to how long it had been since that tragedy, he had had a friend born the very same night. “These three, though. I recognize these three.” And his father leaned forward with the violet egg shifted into only one hand so he could point with the other, starting with the green one, “This one belonged to Prince Aemon, or maybe I should say it still belongs to him. Aegon told me his brother had given it to him for safe-keeping when he had gone to the Citadel, hadn't wanted to draw too much attention to himself and taking it with himself to the Wall wouldn't have done him any favor.”

Aurane's smile grew a little, he had heard kind stories about the Maester all his life, and now he was left wondering if Arthur had any means of letting the old man know that he was not as alone in Westeros as he may think. Never mind the fact that with Lucerys, his brother and his sons around, the man wasn't without kin left really.

People just tended to forget about female bloodlines.

And the little fact that Lucerys Velaryon had been a king's nephew.

“And the white one.” His father's voice went nearly soft, “It's your grandmother's, son.” And Aurane's breath wooshed out of his lungs in an exhale. Princess Rhae Targaryen, or Lady Rhae Velaryon as she had been known after her marriage, Lady of Driftmark, had been a guiding but also loving hand for both her sons and her niece, and later spoiled her grandsons absolutely rotten after Lady Crivina's early death and Aurane's own mother's lack of interest in her son. She had loved them all dearly, told great stories of her brothers.

Aurane was still somewhat glad that his grandmother had died a year before Jace had disappeared, it would have otherwise broken her gentle heart.

“We used to stare at that egg as children. Laeno, Eleana and I. For hours. Always asking my Mother if it could still hatch, and she would always tell us that the world had no need for real dragons anymore.” His father reminisced, stroking a finger over the white golden shell, “She gave it to Aegon because her brother had asked, and your grandmother always said she was fonder of her children and grandchildren than of an egg. I never dared to ask her later if she mourned having lost it, not when her brother, her nephew and so many more had died in that hellish fire.”

“And the violet one?”

“It was set onto the highest point of the circle, right in the middle. This egg belonged to King Maekar, Aegon's own father.” His father explained and Aurane stared at the egg that was so much older than the others then and still looked...alive and it was weird to think like that. It was an egg, it wasn't alive, but it looked nothing like the ugly greyed rockhard heavy eggs that Aerys had set aflame in the Dragonpit.

And now it also made sense why Aurane was thinking of Jon so intensely when he looked at this particular egg.

“When we were in Starfall after I brought Arthur and the others home from King's Landing, you told me Jon has grandmother's eyes, that they turned more violet, away from Rhaegar's indigo. And...” Aurane's lips refused to form the words because this was insane.  
“And your grandmother got her eyes from her father, King Maekar. I know where your thoughts are headed, son. The egg is the color of Jon's eyes, it's like the gods had destined it.” His father mused and Aurane pushed both hands into his hair.

Having half a thought over which gods his father was talking about. The old ones? The new ones? Or those of times really long gone?

“Arthur is gonna drop dead. If anyone is not ready for dragon eggs, it's him.” Aurane mumbled under his breath but knew that his father had heard every word. In this little dispute that had grown since Arthur's raging outbreak over a year ago, Lucerys had joined those who were silently – and certainly behind Arthur's back – still pulling strings for Jon's future. Something that Aurane was steadily ignoring, for he was standing firmly on Arthur's side in all of this, Jon had to be happy, the rest wasn't important until the boy made the decision himself.

And now dragon eggs.

“Well, then you can spend the weeks we'll need to reach Starfall thinking about how to best tell him.” His father decided and carefully put King Maekar's egg back into the chest. Aurane snorted and bent down to grab the straw he had carried from the cargo bay and covered the eggs with it before closing and locking the chest once more, the key going back to the chain around his neck when he was done.

No one would touch this chain but him until they reached Starfall.

\--

“Lord Admiral Aurane Velaryon.”

Aurane looked up upon the words being called out and he grinned when he saw Arthur leaning against a set of crates on the pier.

“Finally a title that shows who you are.” Arthur chuckled and Aurane made the last steps down the plank before he was standing in front of him, “And to have been there when Lord Stannis proposed that to King Robert, oh his face I would have wanted to see.”  
“He still looked mighty constipated when Jon Arryn made the announcement.” Aurane answered him and they embraced, brief but it still felt good. “Arthur, I found something.”

“On Dragonstone?” Arthur wanted to know as they pushed apart again, behind Aurane he could hear more people walk down the plank.  
“Oh and what he found.” His father explained and whisked Arthur into his arms, “Where is that wolf of yours?” He asked and let go of Arthur again, leaving him to greet Laeno and Corlyn, both of them carrying the chest between them, Arthur eyed it with a little frown.

“Out unfortunately. You met us at a time where the castle is near empty. Ben and Allyria are in Sunspear with Alysanne, Ashara and Eyrin took the girls to see Lady Blackmont. I have no idea where the boys are.” Arthur gave them in answer and Aurane caught easily how his eyes glanced over to the harbor wall that loomed over part of the bay, the place where Jon had fallen down from.

“I think it's actually better if it's just Andric and you for now, maybe fetch Richard on the way. And now let us go up, I don't want this chest out in the open for longer.”

They made their way up into Starfall and Arthur did indeed fetch Richard from the sparring yard before they all descended on Andric in his solar. Similar to Corlyn some moons ago, Andric sent the guards away after Lucerys had asked and checked outside the windows, and only then after doors had gotten locked did Laeno and Corlyn set the chest down in the middle of the room.

“Is this what you found?” Andric wanted to know and Aurane nodded, pushing his uncle and his brother to sit down on the settee and pulled up a chair.  
“Sit.” He told Arthur and got a raised eyebrow in turn, “Seriously, sit, I won't continue until you do, you're gonna thank me later.” Arthur let himself be pushed down onto the chair but still looked confused. “When I couldn't find anything, I told Father and Corlyn about the key and Father brought up the old prison below the Dragonmont.”

Andric blinked and came to stand next to Lucerys at the front of his desk, leaned back against the wood, Aurane pushed a hand through his hair and focused on Arthur with Richard standing behind him.

“You went down into the dungeons?”

“It's more or less the only place on the island that the stags never set foot in. It wouldn't surprise me if the islanders told them some horror stories just so they left one place untouched on the island. It wasn't even much to search for down there.” Aurane began his little tale, “There is a cave-in on the stairs that lead down to the third level, no getting past that. Many of the cells are open, doors destroyed. Those still locked, well, nothing a little Valyrian Steel can't solve.” And he tapped the dagger he carried at his hip, a gift from Jace when Aurane had been ten. “Still took some locks to be forced upon until I found one with more than just bones behind it.”

And a lot of fancy coal powder dust that Rhaegar must have grabbed from the pyromancers to scare people off.

“And the chest was in it?” Arthur questioned and looked down at it, Aurane hummed and pulled out the key from under his tunic, taking it off from the chain before hanging it to Arthur, it was his after all.

“The key unlocks it, but before you do...Just promise me to not freak out.” Aurane asked of him and Arthur blinked, hand already outstretched to put the key in the lock.  
“Is it that bad?” He demanded to know and Aurane had no idea how to answer that, it greatly depended on a lot of things, it would certainly be a surprise.  
“It's not something we expected. Any of us, for sure.” His father came to his help and Arthur glanced over to him before shaking whatever thoughts had befallen him off.

He set the key into the lock, turned it the three times until it popped and then briefly hesitated before he reached for the opened top of the chest to push it open all the way. Aurane bit his lips and walked right to his side, just as Arthur gasped and leaned forward to frantically push away the protecting hay.

Andric choked on air and Richard mumbled some curse words that Aurane wasn't even keen to repeat in his head, Arthur went silently down from the chair and onto his knees in front of the chest, eyes wide, but at least he hadn't just dropped over like Aurane had feared.

“Are those...They don't look like the ones Aerys tried to hatch...”Arthur quietly mumbled and Aurane knelt down next to him, pressing a knee up against Arthur's to give comfort in this shock.  
“They haven't turned to stone, they're not like those we saw.” Aurane agreed, Arthur glanced over to him, one hand already outstretched to touch the egg, Aurane noted without surprise that he had felt compelled towards the violet one. “And they don't feel like those, too, or at least Father says so. I never got to hold the ones Aerys had found on Dragonstone.”

“They feel...I wouldn't say alive...but not dead to me.” Lucerys took over and both Dayne brothers looked to him, Richard was just silent, “The eggs Aerys found came from gods only know where on Dragonstone, they could have lain hidden there since the times of Balerion being nothing but a hatchling. And those eggs were dead, turned to utter stone long ago, every boy with Valyrian blood in them could have told you that.”

“Rhaegar did say so.” Arthur brought up in memory, his hand coming to rest upon the violet egg, he showed no reaction but maybe he was just too shook up. Arthur had Valyrian blood in him through his mother, little as it may be. Aurane had definitely felt something when he had in the end brought himself to hold one of the eggs. “Told me already before everything was set up that it wouldn't work.”

“We all knew it.” Lucerys gave in a grim response, “Everyone but Aerys knew nothing would happen, we only went through with it because it meant having some control over preventing another castle from burning down.” He closed his eyes in clear painful memories and Aurane was grateful that Andric reached out to squeeze his uncle's shoulder.

“Speaking of Summerhall...Arthur, are you sure Rhaegar never mentioned having found something in the ruins?” Aurane wanted to know from Arthur who had picked up the violet egg and knelt up straight again, violet eyes so close in color to the egg's looked at him.  
“No, not to me.” He disagreed and Aurane glanced from him up to Richard who had to shake his head to force his gaze away from the dragon eggs.

“If not to Arthur, then to no one.” Rhaegar's former squire emphasized, “Rhaegar wouldn't have entrusted that to anyone else.” Aurane looked back to Arthur who was focused on the violet egg now, but then his mind must have caught up with the real meaning behind Aurane's question. His eyes swept around to look between all four present Velaryons before settling on Aurane again.

“You can't be serious...”

“Father?” Aurane chose to push the words over to the one person who remembered it best out of them, Arthur looked to Lucerys.  
“Maekar's, Aemon's and my mother's.” Lucerys explained quietly and Arthur had the egg so quickly back into the chest that Aurane had to smile over it. “The violet one is...”

“Maekar's.” Arthur continued Lucerys' interrupted words easily, “I know everything about the eggs from Daeron, to his sons, to the children of his sons. Rhaegar liked to read about it, it was connected with Summerhall, and everything concerning Summerhall fascinated him.” His right hand began to shake and he pressed it against his thigh, Aurane bit his lip to not reach out to him. “Dragon eggs. Seven Hells.”

\--

A thump hit the door from outside and a high voice grunted.

Silence reigned for a moment before someone knocked, little voices failing in actually whispering, Andric was already moving to unlock the door while Arthur locked the chest and pushed it up against the shelf in the corner. The key disappeared in his tunic just as Andric swung the door open and three little boys toppled over and inside.

Torrhen was the first back on his feet, not looking guilty in the slightest while he pulled Jon and Edric up as well, those two smiling in guilt. A thought that was forgotten though when the boys spotted the new guests in the solar and beelined for the known faces. Edric dashed over to Lucerys who laughed and swept the boy up into his arms, Torrhen hurried over to Laeno and demanded stories and to know who the person sitting next to him was.

Jon walked calmly over to Aurane and grinned, “Are you okay again?” Violet eyes flickered over to Aurane's shoulder, a scar would forever tell the story of what had happened but that was all.  
“I am perfectly fine, Jon.” Aurane assured and laughed when arms got stretched up. He picked the boy up without any trouble and smiled over the hug he received, catching Arthur's eyes over Jon's shoulder.

They would protect the boy.

From everyone too eager for power and vengeance.

From scheming plans and plots against stags.

“Did you hear already?” Jon began when he had pulled back again, “Torrhen and I got another cousin, her name is Arya.”  
“Another girl, huh? Girl cousins are fun, Jon, they either want to braid your hair,” Jon pulled a face just as Aurane had expected it, the boy hated it if someone touched his hair and wasn't his father, “Or they tell you you're annoying and pinch you.” Aurane recalled from when Ashara and Allyria had been younger.

“Oh stop it.” Arthur shoved lightly at him, “Don't you listen to a word he is saying, Jon, Uncle Aurane is a stupid idiot. Little Arya will love you.”

\--

“I gotta admit, your calm is freaking me out.”

Aurane watched Arthur closely after he had spoken but the older man was still only taking off his clothes and folding them neatly to be placed into the chest. Arthur only smiled, soft and not strained at all, though he had been shocked, he had not even for a short moment reacted with the freak out Aurane had feared of him.

“I'm fine, Aurane.” He insisted and set his pants into the chest before joining Aurane in bed, pulling the covers over them and rolling onto his side so they could look at each other. “I don't know what I was expecting, certainly not dragon eggs but they are eggs, not actual dragons. We can keep them secret and hidden until we find a solution for anything, or even an explanation.” They smiled at each other then and Arthur stroked a finger over the rather prominent pinkish scar on Aurane's shoulder.

“It looks more frightening than it was.” He tried to downplay it but Arthur scoffed at him, playfully shoving at Aurane's foot with his own. “I don't regret jumping. And I didn't do it because of any titles, any honors or some glory. I did it to save Barristan's life and I would do it all over again.”  
“Barristan was a wreck, he wrote Ashara immediately upon his return to King's Landing. Another silver haired man bleeding in a bed of water.” Arthur told him and Aurane winced, hadn't even thought of it before.

“Hey.” Aurane softly called out and brought his hand up to frame Arthur's face on one side, “I came back. I'm here.” Arthur smiled, a bright unguarded one and Aurane knew that he was maybe lost a bit too much into this whole unnamed thing but he didn't care.

There was happiness found here. With Arthur.

And happiness felt good.

\--

Two days later, a boy of near seven namedays found himself standing in front of the locked door of the staircase leading down to the dungeons.

Frowning at the heavy steel.

Wondering why he was suddenly feeling a pull to go down there.

**Author's Note:**

> And there we go. Dragon Eggs. And not some magically attained ones from Essos, but eggs with real Targaryen history to them. Went a little creative with colors because they're not known. Rhaegal is my favourite dragon in canon ASoIaF so I needed at least one green egg XD.
> 
> There will be two more Oneshots before the journey to Winterfell starts. One of them a look back at Arthur's POV upon arriving back in Starfall after Lyanna's death. The other one will be called "The Prince in the Locket" and in there, Jon will learn the truth about his blood and he'll get to see the eggs, the sword, the shield, the rubies and so on.
> 
> With the christmas time coming up now, it'll take me some time to finish the oneshots still. Don't know when it will go up.


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